Couple charged for falsification

CEBU, Philippines – Two counts of criminal complaints for falsification of public documents were filed yesterday by the National Bureau of Investigation against a former Cebu City Hall employee and her live-in partner who were caught during an entrapment operation selling fake business permits.

Laura Abadia and Roque Rama signed a waiver of detention for them to answer the complaints before the Cebu City Prosecutor’s Office and avail of their rights for a preliminary investigation.

The couple were entrapped by the NBI operatives led by Supervising Agent Rennan Oliva last Wednesday afternoon at the vicinity of the City Hall. The entrapment operation stemmed from a request from Cebu City Councilor Augustus Jun Pe whom the complainant, Gina Edig, sought help.

Edig said that sometime in January Bernardita Lily Bonjoc and Ramil Lazaga requested her help to process their application for mayor’s business permits.

Edig said Abadia offered her to process the business permit application for P1,500 each. According to Edig, she then gave all the necessary documentary requirements for the processing of the applications together with the P5,500 cash.

Sometime in February, Edig said Bonjoc’s business permit was already done but was not delivered to her until she was able to produce the P1,500 agreed service charge.

Edig said she got first the permit for Bonjoc but she later found out that it was fake. Edig decided to seek the help of Pe and the NBI for the pending application of Lazaga.

An entrapment operation was set up that resulted to the arrest of the suspects. Abadia was a former employee of the city government but was dismissed in 1998 for misconduct. — Fred P. Languido/LPM (THE FREEMAN)